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Completed Research

Administration

Legalizing Increased Maximum Truck Weight - NM14ADM-01

This research examined other states’ laws, regulations, and practices to determine which states allow modified & higher truck weights for SHVs, and the impacts to pavement and bridge service life, impacts on safety, the economy, enforcement and the effect on bridge weight limit posting.

This research project is expected to result in a detailed implementation plan for a CADD CMS that improves engineering workflow efficiency, data integrity, engineering data re-usability, and increases data collaboration throughout the DOT and extended Consultant Community.

The goal of this project is to perform an assessment of the current NMDOT contracting process and develop a training course designed for contract managers to address contract administration and federal and state regulations.

A survey of State Transportation Agencies in the United States that was conducted to identify staffing plan practices and concerns. The survey responses demonstrated that most state transportation agencies have at least one primary area in human resources they consider as innovative, and that there is a broad-based interest among states to cooperate in exploring new and better methods.

Design

Rumble Strips: Existing Literature and State of the Practice in New Mexico - NM12SP-07-001Final Report

This project will result in providing guidance to NMDOT for new directives, standard drawings, and specifications for each category of rumble strip application including but not limited to various roadway classifcations and uses, roadway typical sections and surface conditions.

Develop a stream aggradation/degradation risk index and GIS map for New Mexico. The primary focus of the project will be to create a field-verified aggradation/degradation risk index that will be used by NMDOT engineers in the design of drainage structures that cross waterways within the state’s 83 USGS Hydrologic Units.

Environment

This project will provide District One with specific energy conservation opportunities to reduce lifetime utility and facility maintenance costs. The contractor will also provide a “How To” manual so that other Districts can determine if they could benefit from an energy audit.

The goal of this research is to analyze the factors and develop specifications for permeability of Superpave mix designs which will result in extending the lifetime of pavements by reducing moisture related damage; decrease pavement maintenance costs, and improve public safety.

The objective of this research project is to determine the fatigue endurance limits (FELs) of typical New Mexico hot mix asphalt (HMA) mixes. The research has the overall goal of providing guidance for future designs of fatigue-resistant pavements in New Mexico.

This project is expected to result in a proposal for a mechanistic-based design equation and localized LRFD resistance factors. The overall objective of the project is to provide guidance for future designs of drilled shafts in New Mexico.

Objectives of this project are as follows: a. Assess current design, testing, and evaluation methods of perpetual pavements, with particular emphasis on their applicability to the design of perpetual pavements with a design life of fifty (50) or more years in conditions typical of New Mexico pavements, materials and environments. b. Evaluate the effects of moisture infiltration on the current perpetual pavement performance considering reduction in stiffness and strength properties of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) and pavement foundation layers. c. Determine the optimal perpetual pavement structure using the mechanistic-empirical design approach to develop and evaluate design alternatives based on pavement stiffness and thickness. d. Quantify the impact of removing layers, and considering various degrees of bonding within a perpetual pavement section. e. Document the literature, analysis, findings and recommendations for perpetual pavement methods and guidelines for consideration to be incorporated into the current NMDOT perpetual pavement design.

The research reported herein evaluates the possibility of replacement of the current method of R-Value estimation used in the preparation of subgrade and base course materials. This research was conducted by measuring stiffness values of said subgrade or base course using three candidate devices: the Clegg Impact Hammer, the GeoGauge, and a Dynamic Cone Penetrometer. The stiffness values were then correlated with laboratory determined R-Values of the same material to find a mathematical relationship with the candidate devices.

Mitigation of Alkali-Silica Reactivity in New Mexico - NM97MSC-05View Report

Evaluation of a Mechanical Stiffness Gauge for Compaction Control of Granular Media - NM99MSC-07 View Report

Safety

Implementation of Unfunded Mandate for Positive Train Control (PTC)

This project provided a state of the practice for NMDOT to understand how to best respond to the PTC requirement, the costs, the funding sources and impacts on other commuter rail systems’ budgets and plans. This project identified how the other 22 commuter rail systems in the nation are responding to the RSIA and how they are planning to fund deployment of PTC.

This investigation will collect information on state-of-the-art snow barrier methods, their capabilities, and the problems these barriers are proven to solve; develop a method of analysis that can accurately analyze the integrative environmental impacts on snow drift; develop a subsequent method for effectively matching snow barrier systems to environmental conditions; develop appropriate responses to legal requirements; install snow barrier systems at two roadway sites and evaluate their effectiveness; and, finally, validate the match analysis method for effectiveness.

Development of User-Friendly Software Application for Extracting Information from National Bridge Inventory Source Files Abstract From Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 2202, pp. 137-147. Copyright, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C., 2010. Abstract posted with permission of TRB. For complete paper, please link to http://pubsindex.trb.org.

Purchase and test a piece of machinery or attachment to be able to install metal posts more efficiently. District will purchase and test equipment designed to install these posts more efficiently. Records will be kept on staff hours, machine hours, and level of difficulty of the metal barrier repair.

This project will evaluate various methods of coincidentally capturing moisture contents of soils during the compactive efforts to incorporate into the stiffness measurements so that the structural capacity and resulting compliance with design requirements can be field verified.

Transportation Planning

Analyze the current practice of traffic data collection, analysis and forecasting, and provide recommendations for improving data collection procedures, data quality control and most effective use of this data.